Majority-minority magnet school named state’s best

For the second year in a row, Advanced Technologies Academy was named the best public high school in Nevada, according to the U.S. News and World Report.

The national magazine reviewed more than 31,200 public high schools from across the nation as part of its 2014 Best High Schools Rankings. The annual rankings were released this month.

Schools were ranked within each state and nationally, based on students’ performance on standardized tests as well as college-level Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate exams. The magazine also looked at how well schools educated their black, Hispanic and low-income students.

The top 4,707 schools in the country were given gold, silver or bronze medals. Nationally, 500 high schools earned gold medals, 1,519 received silver and 2,688 took home bronze.

U.S. News, with help from American Institutes for Research, analyzed 125 high schools in Nevada. Of those, seven campuses received a medal, down from 11 last year.

The Clark County School District had five campuses that received a medal this year, up from three campuses last year. Advanced Technologies Academy and Northwest Career and Technical Academy returned to the U.S. News rankings; Virtual High School was recognized nationally, but fell off the rankings.

• Advanced Technologies Academy was ranked the top high school in Nevada and 450th nationally, down from 304th nationally last year. The gold-medal-winning school had a 56 percent participation rate and a 47 percent passing rate on the Advanced Placement exam.

The magnet school has 1,086 students, of which 70 percent are minorities. About 38 percent of students participate in the national school lunch program.

• Las Vegas Academy of International Studies was ranked the third best high school in Nevada and 1,011st nationally. The silver medal-winning school had a 41 percent participation rate and a 33 percent passing rate on the Advanced Placement exams.

The performing arts magnet school has 1,696 students, of which half are minorities. About 30 percent of students come from low-income families.

• Northwest Career and Technical Academy was ranked the fourth-best high school in Nevada and 1,239th nationally, up from 2,206th nationally last year. The silver medal-winning school had a 40 percent participation rate and a 27 percent passing rate on the Advanced Placement exams.

The magnet school has 1,953 students, of which a little more than half are minorities. About 31 percent of students come from low-income families.

• Clark High School was ranked the fifth-best high school in Nevada and 1,605th nationally. The silver medal-winning school had a 39 percent participation rate and a 19 percent passing rate on the Advanced Placement exams.

The comprehensive high school with a magnet program has 2,885 students, of which 84 percent are minorities. More than two-thirds of students come from low-income families.

• East Career and Technical Academy was ranked the sixth-best high school in Nevada and 1,879th nationally. The silver medal-winning school had a 59 percent participation rate and a 7 percent passing rate on the Advanced Placement exams.

The magnet school has 1,813 students, of which 83 percent are minorities. Two-thirds of students come from low-income families.